BISON COME UP SHORT AGAINST #22 W&J 47-37

Jan. 20 - WASHINGTON, Pa. – A short-handed Bethany College women’s basketball team led #22 Washington & Jefferson by two at halftime, but the Bison couldn’t shake off a cold shooting night and the Presidents rallied for a 47-37 victory Wednesday night.

Due to injuries, BC dressed only seven players in the contest, but came out smoking in the early stages. Three-pointers by freshman Kalya Taormina (Center Twp, Pa./Quigley) and sophomore Anne Wilson (Saegertown, Pa./Cambridge Springs) highlighted an 11-4 Green and White spurt to open the game. However, that was followed by a nearly 10-minute stretch without a Bison point, which allowed W&J to score 10 straight and take a 14-11 lead.

Bethany did close the half with a flourish, as a trey from sophomore Audra Droginske (Wheeling, W.Va./Wheeling Central) tied the score and buckets from Taormina and freshman Taylor Kress (Sharpsville, Pa.) pushed the Bison in front by an 18-16 margin at intermission. Although BC shot just 27 percent (7-26) in the first half, W&J managed to hit only 3-of-21 (14 percent) from the floor.

The second half saw the offenses continue to struggle at the start, as the first basket didn’t come until 3:15 into the period. The teams swapped the lead five times before the midway point of the half, with Bethany taking their final lead on a lay-in by Kress with 11:41 to go for a 25-24 advantage. W&J senior point guard Kennan Killeen then spearheaded a 10-2 Presidents’ run with a pair of threes and a jumper to propel her team to a 33-26 lead.

After that, the Green and White would not get closer than five the rest of the way, as they shot 27 percent (8-30) after halftime and went just 2-for-11 from the arc. Bethany did finish the night with a 42-33 rebounding advantage, including 15 offensive boards.

Leading the Bison in the scoring and rebounding columns was Kress, who recorded her third double-double of the season with 11 points and 12 rebounds. Wilson tallied nine and Taormina finished with seven points and nine rebounds.

Killeen’s second half surge gave her a team-high 12 points for the Presidents.

Bethany will return home Saturday, as they begin the second half of the PAC slate by hosting Westminster in a 2 p.m. tip-off.